Glossary entry

Spanish term or phrase:

205 caberίas

English translation:

205 caballerías (a unit of land equivalent to 45 hectares)

Added to glossary by Charles Davis
Sep 28, 2013 04:01
10 yrs ago
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Spanish term

205 caberίas

Spanish to English Social Sciences Agriculture Legal battle
Hi,
I would like an idea of this word means, when referring to the size/area of a farm.
The person who is describing this land is a campesinos from Guatemala, so I am not sure if he might be mispronouncing the word or if this is terminology used in the area of Peten, Guatemala.

The original text says:
“El total de la tierra son 205 caberίas … entonces el total de los asociados éramos 218”

Would appreciate your help with this.
Thank you, Estela
Change log

Sep 30, 2013 15:05: Charles Davis Created KOG entry

Sep 30, 2013 15:06: Charles Davis changed "Edited KOG entry" from "<a href="/profile/1321043">Charles Davis's</a> old entry - "205 caberίas"" to ""205 caballerías (a unit of land equivalent to just over 45 hectares)""

Sep 30, 2013 15:06: Charles Davis changed "Edited KOG entry" from "<a href="/profile/1321043">Charles Davis's</a> old entry - "205 caberίas"" to ""205 caballerías (a unit of land equivalent 45 hectares)""

Proposed translations

+1
3 hrs
Spanish term (edited): 205 caberίas
Selected

205 caballerías (a unit of land equivalent to just over 45 hectares)

I am sure that what sounded like "cabería" was in fact "caballería". This is an old unit of land measurement, dating from colonial times still used in Central American countries. Its value varies from one country to another; in Guatamala, according to Wikipedia, it is equivalent to 45 ha 1,266.74 m²:

http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caballería_(medida_de_superfici...

Expressed another way, this is 45.126674 hectares. If you want that in acres, it's equivalent to 111 acres 22235 ft²:
http://www.metric-conversions.org/area/hectares-to-acres.htm

So these 205 caballerías, in total, would amount to very nearly 9,251 hectares, or some 22,860 acres. (I'll double check all these figures and add a note if I find an error.)

"Caballería" really can't be translated; it's a specifically Hispanic measure. You'll have to keep "205 caballerías" in the translation and add a note.


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Note added at 3 hrs (2013-09-28 07:36:06 GMT)
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Confirmation:

Value of caballería in Guatemala: it's reckoned as 45 hectares:

"En Guatemala, el acuerdo gubernativo del 17 de febrero de 1925 estableció que una caballería tiene 45 hectáreas"
http://www.glosariochapin.com/c/terminos-con-las-letras-ca/c...
(This is from the Google search; the page won't open).

This confirms 45 hectares, and also indicates a much smaller unit, the manzana, which is around 0.7 hectare (7000 square metres):

"…se detectó que 22 terratenientes poseían más de 200
caballerías de terreno cada uno (1 caballería = 45 hectáreas); en
tanto que un promedio de dos millones de jefes de familias
campesinas no poseían ni una sola parcela. Un poco más de un
cuarto de millón eran lo que se podría llamar “pequeños
propietarios”, con menos de 5 manzanas por persona (5
manzanas = 3.49 hectáreas)."
http://www.odhag.org.gt/pdf/Hambre siemprehahabido.pdf (p. 20)

If you do the calculations at 45 hectares, you could round down to 111 acres per caballería, and 205 caballerías will be 9225 hectares or 22795 acreas. Anyway, it's there or thereabouts.
Note from asker:
This really is great research and help, Charles. Thank you so much. I now realize that when the interviewee says 'caberia' he was shortening the pronunciation of 'caballeria." And thank you for the rhyme, Gallagy2!
Peer comment(s):

agree Yvonne Gallagher : "'Twas certain he could write, and cipher too:/ Lands he could measure,...and still the wonder grew/That one small head could carry all he knew"!!!//well, you do take on the village schoolmaster role sometimes:-)
2 hrs
LOL! Thanks for making me smile! The "lands he could measure" part is apt here. (And for the agree, of course :) ) // Yes, I know; I can't help it!
neutral Belli : Fascinating! Very educational.
2 days 3 hrs
Thank you, Belli!
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Thank you so much Charles for your help, your research and documentation for us (ProZ participants) to follow the links!"
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